A cross section of Nigerians have called for the unbundling of the office of the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN).
According to them, the occupant of that office possesses “overbearing and ubiquitous powers” which can impact negatively on the judiciary.
This was part of recommendations contained in a communique issued at the end of a one-day conference on Judicial Accountability, organised by TAP Initiative with support from Open Society Foundation.
Last year, former Justice of the Supreme Court, Retired Justice Muhammad Dattijo had made a similar call during his valedictory speech on retiring from the bench of the apex court.
According to the retired apex court justice, the CJN being the chairman of National Judicial Council, Federal Judicial Service Commission, National Judicial Institute and Legal Practitioners Privileges Committee possesses overwhelming powers that can be abused.
The conference, which has the theme: “Impact of Judicial Accountability on Democratic Resilience and Public Trust in the Legal System”, had 540 participants drawn from the judiciary, civil society actors, lawyers, university students, Embassies and High Commissions as well as other international development partners.
Amongst those who signed the communique issued on Monday include J.S. Okutepa (SAN), Adamson Adeboro (SAN), Mbasekei Martin Obono, Victoria Benson and Lillian Okenwa.
The communique recalled that discussants “questioned the overbearing and ubiquitous power of the Chief Justice of Nigeria on the accountability structures of the Judiciary, especially the National Judicial Council, where the CJN almost single-handedly appoints all the members.”
While positing that the situation is one of the greatest reasons for the dwindling trust Nigerians have in the judiciary, they said it would be difficult for the NJC to exercise disciplinary control over judicial officers if they are appointed by the CJN. Besides, the participants argued that having been appointed by the CJN, the NJC cannot take any disciplinary measures against the CJN if the need arises.
“That the office of the CJN should be unbundled especially as chairman of National Judicial Council, Federal Judicial Service Commission, National Judicial Institute and Legal Practitioners Privileges Committee,” the communique read in part.
Meanwhile, the participants called for the strengthening of the NJC in order to hold judicial officers accountable; however, they surmised that the code of ethics for judicial officers by the NJC needs no review but proper political will by the CJN to investigate and sanction erring judicial officers.
On the issue of appointments, the participants called for the strengthening of the integrity requirement for the appointment of judges and to make it more transparent.
They identified transparency in judicial appointments as a veritable medium to curb the decadence in the judiciary and achieve judicial accountability.
“The topical issue of nepotistic appointment of heads of courts was also raised and opinions seemed to be divided on its propriety. The keynote speaker noted that there was nothing wrong with heads of courts appointing their family members into judicial offices so long as they meet the requirements.
“The question posed was whether merit and qualification alone is sufficient basis to appoint a family member or whether the underlying moral and ethical considerations make it inappropriate. A greater majority of panelists frowned at this practice and felt it infringed inalienable moral and ethical duties of the implicated heads of courts”, the communique read.
The conference was convened to acknowledge the critical role of the Judiciary in Nigeria’s democracy and to recognise the far-reaching impact of judicial pronouncements on the lives of citizens.
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